BY THE NUMBERS
Dow futures pointed to a sharp decline at Monday's open after daily Covid-19 cases hit a record high Friday of 83,757. New infections on Saturday nearly matched that level. Cases are also spiking in Europe, with various degrees of restrictions going back into effect. Stocks were mixed on Friday, as the Dow and S&P 500 snapped three-week winning streaks and Nasdaq broke its four weeks of gains. (CNBC)
It's a busy week ahead on Wall Street, with about a third of the S&P 500 companies reporting quarterly results this week, including big tech companies. New home sales for September are out at 10 a.m. ET on Monday. The first look at third-quarter GDP is out Thursday morning, with economists expecting a 32.5% bounce-back in economic growth. Friday brings the final day of October trading. (CNBC)
IN THE NEWS TODAY
With eight days until Election Day, nearly 59 million ballots have been cast so far, exceeding all the early and absentee voting in the 2016 presidential cycle. A total of more than 136 million people voted in the election four years ago. As of Sunday, Democrats registrants cast 51% of all ballots reported compared to 31% from Republicans. (AP)
* Biden, Trump focus on battleground states in 11th-hour pitch (AP)
Federal appeals judge Amy Coney Barrett is expected to be confirmed by the Senate on Monday as a justice on the Supreme Court, bringing an end to the Democrats' fight to prevent the vote until after the Nov. 3 election. The 48-year-old judge is set to fill the seat of the late liberal powerhouse Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, solidifying the court's conservative edge to 6-3. (CNBC)
Senate Democratic leaders are asking Vice President Mike Pence to stay away from presiding over Monday's session due to potential health risks after his aides tested positive for Covid-19. Pence's tie-breaking vote is not expected to be needed. (AP)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she expects to hear from the White House on Monday on updated language on a coronavirus relief measure. Pelosi and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows on CNN on Sunday accused each other of moving the goal posts in stimulus talks that have been off and on over the past several months.
Both sides are trying to reach a deal before the Nov. 3 election. Meadows also said, "We're not going to control the pandemic ... because it is a contagious virus just like the flu." Pelosi said, "To do anything, though, that does not crush the virus is really official malfeasance." (CNBC)
In addition to two days each in excess of 83,700 new coronavirus cases in the U.S., infections grew by 5% or more over the past week in 37 states as of Friday, according to a CNBC analysis of Johns Hopkins data. The nation is reporting roughly 63,200 daily new cases based on a weekly average, a more than 14% increase compared with a week ago. (CNBC)
* Dr. Scott Gottlieb: U.S. at Covid ‘tipping point’ but can still prevent new ‘exponential spread’ (CNBC)
U.K. pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said Monday its potential Covid-19 vaccine produced a similar immune response in older and younger adults. Adverse responses to the vaccine among the elderly, the age group at highest risk from the coronavirus, were also found to be lower, said AstraZeneca, which is developing the vaccine in collaboration with Oxford University. (CNBC)
Drugmakers and research centers are scrambling to deliver a safe and effective vaccine to combat Covid, which has infected nearly 43.2 million people and claimed more than 1.15 million lives worldwide. The U.S. accounts for almost 20% of all global cases and deaths.
Ant Group will raise $34.5 billion in its dual initial public offering after setting the price for its shares on Monday, making it the biggest listing of all time. The Chinese financial technology giant previously said it would split its stock issuance equally across Shanghai and Hong Kong, issuing 1.67 billion new shares in each location. (CNBC)
Facebook (FB) announced on Monday the launch of cloud gaming on its desktop website and Android app but said it's unable to bring the games to iOS due to Apple's (AAPL) "arbitrary" policies. Facebook's web and Android users can try free-to-play games in seconds without leaving the social network. (CNBC)
* Apple to launch new AirPods, AirPods Pro to further boost wearables business (Bloomberg)
Tesla (TSLA) will begin shipping made-in-China electric cars to Europe on Tuesday, according to Chinese media reports. About 7,000 Model 3s made at the Shanghai gigafactory are set for arrival in Belgium at the end of next month, with planned deliveries to many countries including Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland and Sweden, state-backed news outlet The Paper said Monday.
Hundreds of thousands of Californians lost power as utilities sought to prevent the chance of their equipment sparking wildfires and the fire-weary state braced for a new bout of dry, windy weather. It's the fifth time this year that PG&E (PCGU) has cut power to customers in a bid to reduce the risk that downed or fouled power lines or other equipment could ignite a blaze. (AP)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Shares of German enterprise software group SAP (SAP) sank more than 20% in U.S. premarket trading after the company cut its revenue and profit forecast for 2020. SAP said coronavirus lockdowns would affect demand for its software well into 2021. SAP also announced plans to go all-in on cloud computing, competing with the likes of Oracle (ORCL) and Salesforce (CRM).
Dunkin' Brands (DNKN) shares rallied more than 15% in the premarket after the company said it was in talks to be acquired by Inspire Brands, the owner of restaurant chains Arby's and Jimmy John's. The New York Times said a deal would take Dunkin' Brands private for $106.50 per share, which would be 20% above the stock's closing price of $88.79 per share on Friday.
Hasbro (HAS) reported third-quarter earnings per share and revenue that beat analysts' expectations. The company posted a profit of $1.88 per share on revenue of $1.78 billion. Wall Street was expecting earnings of $1.63 per share on revenue of $1.74 billion, according to FactSet. The stock was down more than 2%, however, as the company's sales for its TV, film and entertainment division fell short of estimates.
KeyBanc Capital Markets raised its price target on Facebook to $340 per share, citing an "attractive" valuation. "We believe regulatory concerns have exerted downward pressure on valuation multiples," KeyBanc said. That would represent a nearly 20% advance from Friday's close.
JPMorgan raised its price target on Lululemon (LULU) $415 per share from $387 per share. The new price target implies a 12-month upside of 24.3% from Friday's close. JPMorgan cited potential upside from "multiple incremental initiatives," including appointment shopping, virtual waiting lists and increased pop-up stores.